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A brief history of Walt Disney World ticket price increases

Here's a look at how much the cost of a one-day, one-park ticket to a Walt Disney World theme park has increased over the last 43 years, from $3.50 in 1971 (not including individual attraction ticket books), to $15 in 1982, to $99 for a ticket to the Magic Kingdom in 2014.

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The price to get into a Walt Disney World theme park has increased almost every year since 1971, and now, a one-day, one-park ticket to the Magic Kingdom costs $99, making it the most expensive Disney park in the world.

The same ticket to get into Epcot, Disney's Hollywood Studios or Disney Animal Kingdom also went up $4, to $95.

That's a far cry from even a decade ago, when tickets in 2004 cost $52, nearly half the price of a Magic Kingdom ticket today, according to the unofficial Disney theme park guide website AllEars.net.

If you think that's low, go back 20 years to 1994, when Disney increased its one-day ticket prices to $36.

But for a real shocker, take a look at the price of admission on Day 1: In October 1971, a one-day ticket to the Magic Kingdom cost just $3.50.

That may seem like next to nothing, but at the time, both Disney World and Disneyland in California sold books of tickets guests needed to get on rides. Each attraction was rated A–E. An A-ticket would get you a ride on Cinderella's Golden Carousel, while the most popular attractions, like Space Mountain and the Haunted Mansion, were E-ticket rides.

Disney dropped the ticket book system by 1982, but even then, the price of admission was still just $15 to get into either the Magic Kingdom or the newly-opened EPCOT Center.

Now, we're just under the $100 mark. Just a year ago, Disney tickets surpassed $90 for the first time ever, shortly after Universal Orlando became the first theme park resort in the world to charge $90 for a one-day ticket.

Historically, when one Central Florida theme park has increased its prices, the others followed a short time later. Universal raised its price for a one-day, one-park ticket to $96.

Why the constant increases? We asked Walt Disney World spokesman Bryan Malenius, who said the competitive prices reflect "the high quality and breadth of experiences we offer."

We offer a variety of ticket options that provide a great value, and find that most guests select multi-day tickets that offer additional savings.

Despite the increase, Disney noted Florida resident three- and four-day passes are still the same price as last year. See all of Disney's theme park ticket prices and discountshere.

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